PBIS

What is
School-wide PBIS?

One
of the foremost advances in school-wide discipline is the emphasis on
school-wide systems of support that include proactive strategies for defining,
teaching, and supporting appropriate student behaviors to create positive
school environments. Instead of using a piecemeal approach of individual
behavioral management plans, a continuum of positive behavior support for all
students within a school is implemented in areas including the classroom and
non-classroom settings (such as hallways, buses, and restrooms). Positive
behavior support is an application of a behaviorally-based systems approach to
enhance the capacity of schools, families, and communities to design effective
environments that improve the link between research-validated practices and the
environments in which teaching and learning occurs. Attention is focused on
creating and sustaining primary (school-wide), secondary (classroom), and
tertiary (individual) systems of support that improve lifestyle results
(personal, health, social, family, work, recreation) for all children and youth
by making targeted behaviors less effective, efficient, and relevant, and
desired behavior more functional.

Why is
it so important to focus on teaching positive social behaviors?

Frequently,
the question is asked, "Why should I have to teach kids to be good? They
already know what they are supposed to do. Why can I not just expect good
behavior?" In the infamous words of a TV personality, "How is that
working out for you?"

In
the past, school-wide discipline has focused mainly on reacting to specific
student misbehavior by implementing punishment-based strategies including
reprimands, loss of privileges, office referrals, suspensions, and expulsions.
Research has shown that the implementation of punishment, especially when it is
used inconsistently and in the absence of other positive strategies, is
ineffective. Introducing, modeling, and reinforcing positive social behavior is
an important step of a student's educational experience. Teaching behavioral
expectations and rewarding students for following them is a much more positive
approach than waiting for misbehavior to occur before responding. The purpose
of school-wide PBIS is to establish a climate in which appropriate behavior is
the norm.

What is
a systems approach in school-wide PBIS?

An
organization is a group of individuals who behave together to achieve a common
goal. Systems are needed to support the collective use of best practices by
individuals within the organization. The school-wide PBIS process emphasizes
the creation of systems that support the adoption and durable implementation of
evidence-based practices and procedures, and fit within on-going school reform
efforts. An interactive approach that includes opportunities to correct and
improve four key elements is used in school-wide PBIS focusing on: 1) Outcomes,
2) Data, 3) Practices, and 4) Systems.